Saying “No” Is The New “Yes” For Your Life

Have you ever heard the phrase “Quality Over Quantity?” Each word in that phrase is true to its core. And in regards to friendships, even more.

In our crazy high school days, you’ll find you can be the most popular person in your school, but be in the most lonely state. Just as much as you can be the least popular person, but contain the greatest joy.  In other words; you’re either for quantity, or for quality people. Either strangers surround you, or lifting recognizable people do. And this lesson is learned fast if you don’t learn it soon…things start unfolding, people let us down, we’re lied to, talked about behind someone’s back, etc.. Even in my own life, I started to notice and experience that the quality friends always surface to the top, and the friends who were just a number sink to the bottom. You start recognizing the difference, but not always at the pace you would like. This calls for one of the most difficult but eye opening lessons in this life:

College. It comes, and it comes FAST. There is no longer that encapsulated needing of acceptance type of environment. The four walls of the classroom are torn down and it’s game over for the four year “popular game.” It’s almost like the deepest breath of fresh air you’ll ever take. You learn people. Not their back story, or what Molly said about them and their life before you even had the first opportunity to say hello. No strings are attached. You identify their strengths, motives, stories, and their raw self. And as you discover people for people, you start to re-analyze the people in your own life. Are the people who are your “friends” actually beneficial, or just another number to count on your hand? Do they influence you positively? Are they concerned for your concerns or just their own? These are just a few of the many questions that start encircling your mind once you enter that college atmosphere. What you carry either weighs like coal or is as light as a feather- choose to take the feathers over coal. Carry the correct friends.

Yes, you may lose people who you could have sworn were your best friends in high school and the afterward feeling won’t always feel great. But the incredible ending is this: Nothing you lose will ever leave you empty handed. There will always be a greater fill for your life on its way. Your friends determine your set future, and if you’re hoping for a bright one, you may want to start with being surrounded by some flashlights. So, it’s okay to say “no” to people who attempt to place their luggage on top of yours without ever asking to do so, and it’s most definitely okay to say “yes” to the people who offer to not just help carry your luggage, but walk beside you with it through this life.

 

Xoxo,

Bri